Inspired By Chaos

Product Notes

Inspired By Chaos, the new CD from Coming Down With Godspeed, defines new boundaries for Progressive Garage rock, then breaks through them with all the fury of a rabid dog locked in a hot, crowded, noisy kennel. Never before has any Indie band taken the sorts of liberties with rock music normally better left to Progressive Rock professionals from classic Yes to contemporary Dream Theater. Listen to the samples, buy the CD, then decide for yourself if this kind of music belongs in the hands of the unsupervised and the unafraid. _____ Track listing from the CD: ~ The Spiral Circus ~ 1 Enter 2 Sonata Chaotica I 3 The Dreamer 4 Pilgrim Song 5 A Mermaid's Dream 6 Suspended Second In Time 7 Razor's Edge 8 Sonata Chaotica II 9 Exit ~ Solitary Man Reprise ~ 10 When I Close My Eyes 11 Sumerian Blues 12 Three Days In Amsterdam ~ Special Guests: Early Grave ~ 13 Kickstart My Farts (Burrito's Revenge) 14 Summertime Live 15 Frühes Grab ____ Read the review: I've been given an opportunity to review a CD, but more than before, it is an opportunity to also review a genre. It's called Prog-Garage, a marriage between Progressive Rock and Garage Rock. And Coming Down With Godspeed have truly given it an identity. The sound is standard Indie - the basement studio recording quality so familiar in the anti-RIAA realm. But the style is out there in a place that only bands like Yes, Rush, and maybe Pink Floyd might vaguely remember treading through, once, before they splashed into the mainstream. It is in the deep waters of experimentation, where others, like old Genesis and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, preferred to remain. It's rough around the edges, yes, but it has a groove that gives that roughness a home, a place to thrive without inhibitions or fear of judgment. It is eclectic as much as it is consistent, intertwining keyboard and computer-generated sound imagery with the solid drumming and pawn-shop-guitar power chords made notorious by punk and grunge. The CD opens with - wait, let me mention that the track list plays like a night at the theater, or opera, beginning with the first segment that they call 'The Spiral Circus' (maybe it's a night at the circus), moving to 'Solitary Man Reprise', and then a grand finale that includes a 'Special Guest' performance. So, it opens with 'Enter', an exercise in choral harmony, moving to classical (or a close proximity thereof), and into more classic CDWG jams, full of motion, and a whole lot like rock and roll. They add some left turns towards something in the neighborhood of bluegrass, then bring you back out with more classical, almost New Age, then 'Exit', the addendum to 'Enter'. At this point, you think you've heard everything, but they kick up the 'Reprise', a two-parter that hearkens back to the original 'Solitary Man', from their previous CD. 'Three Days In Amsterdam' is a departure from their classic sound, with more refined layers, and appears to be an indication that their creativity is moving forward in more than one direction. And finally you are introduced to the 'Special Guests', which means that they've included a few tracks from EARLY GRAVE, a side project including the core members of CDWG, and a little help from the darker side of garage rock. This last segment includes both live and studio tracks, the last one being somewhat of an homage to the masters of gothic metal. The most interesting twist I encountered while listening was 'Pilgrim Song', a 10-minute epic, that definitely shows their ability to occupy the air waves for more than the traditional three minutes. However, more interesting is that it is a strange tribute(?) to 'Lord of the Rings', or more an opus specifically about the wizard, Gandalf, from the book, or movies. All in all, it is a great listen, never leaving you bored as it keeps changing tone long before it makes the mistake of others, the mistake of over-repetition. But it can't be taken it too seriously. There is obvious humor in some of the tracks and more subtle humor in others. And when I said earlier that it plays like a night at the opera, I also meant that when you reach the end, you will feel like you just enjoyed a show, and will want another encore. I don't know where these guys come from, but they've definitely convinced me. And as soon as I write this last line I'm going to hit play again and join them for another hour. -Mountain Lee, Music Critic At Large.

Inspired By Chaos, the new CD from Coming Down With Godspeed, defines new boundaries for Progressive Garage rock, then breaks through them with all the fury of a rabid dog locked in a hot, crowded, noisy kennel. Never before has any Indie band taken the sorts of liberties with rock music normally better left to Progressive Rock professionals from classic Yes to contemporary Dream Theater. Listen to the samples, buy the CD, then decide for yourself if this kind of music belongs in the hands of the unsupervised and the unafraid. _____ Track listing from the CD: ~ The Spiral Circus ~ 1 Enter 2 Sonata Chaotica I 3 The Dreamer 4 Pilgrim Song 5 A Mermaid's Dream 6 Suspended Second In Time 7 Razor's Edge 8 Sonata Chaotica II 9 Exit ~ Solitary Man Reprise ~ 10 When I Close My Eyes 11 Sumerian Blues 12 Three Days In Amsterdam ~ Special Guests: Early Grave ~ 13 Kickstart My Farts (Burrito's Revenge) 14 Summertime Live 15 Frühes Grab ____ Read the review: I've been given an opportunity to review a CD, but more than before, it is an opportunity to also review a genre. It's called Prog-Garage, a marriage between Progressive Rock and Garage Rock. And Coming Down With Godspeed have truly given it an identity. The sound is standard Indie - the basement studio recording quality so familiar in the anti-RIAA realm. But the style is out there in a place that only bands like Yes, Rush, and maybe Pink Floyd might vaguely remember treading through, once, before they splashed into the mainstream. It is in the deep waters of experimentation, where others, like old Genesis and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, preferred to remain. It's rough around the edges, yes, but it has a groove that gives that roughness a home, a place to thrive without inhibitions or fear of judgment. It is eclectic as much as it is consistent, intertwining keyboard and computer-generated sound imagery with the solid drumming and pawn-shop-guitar power chords made notorious by punk and grunge. The CD opens with - wait, let me mention that the track list plays like a night at the theater, or opera, beginning with the first segment that they call 'The Spiral Circus' (maybe it's a night at the circus), moving to 'Solitary Man Reprise', and then a grand finale that includes a 'Special Guest' performance. So, it opens with 'Enter', an exercise in choral harmony, moving to classical (or a close proximity thereof), and into more classic CDWG jams, full of motion, and a whole lot like rock and roll. They add some left turns towards something in the neighborhood of bluegrass, then bring you back out with more classical, almost New Age, then 'Exit', the addendum to 'Enter'. At this point, you think you've heard everything, but they kick up the 'Reprise', a two-parter that hearkens back to the original 'Solitary Man', from their previous CD. 'Three Days In Amsterdam' is a departure from their classic sound, with more refined layers, and appears to be an indication that their creativity is moving forward in more than one direction. And finally you are introduced to the 'Special Guests', which means that they've included a few tracks from EARLY GRAVE, a side project including the core members of CDWG, and a little help from the darker side of garage rock. This last segment includes both live and studio tracks, the last one being somewhat of an homage to the masters of gothic metal. The most interesting twist I encountered while listening was 'Pilgrim Song', a 10-minute epic, that definitely shows their ability to occupy the air waves for more than the traditional three minutes. However, more interesting is that it is a strange tribute(?) to 'Lord of the Rings', or more an opus specifically about the wizard, Gandalf, from the book, or movies. All in all, it is a great listen, never leaving you bored as it keeps changing tone long before it makes the mistake of others, the mistake of over-repetition. But it can't be taken it too seriously. There is obvious humor in some of the tracks and more subtle humor in others. And when I said earlier that it plays like a night at the opera, I also meant that when you reach the end, you will feel like you just enjoyed a show, and will want another encore. I don't know where these guys come from, but they've definitely convinced me. And as soon as I write this last line I'm going to hit play again and join them for another hour. -Mountain Lee, Music Critic At Large.